“Obviously, (Crosby) is one of the best players in the world, if not the best,” said Bennett, still in his teens and now in the final stretch of his freshman campaign with the Calgary Flames. “So it’s definitely exciting and pretty cool to know I might take a couple draws against him, but you can’t come at it any different.

“As a Canadian kid, obviously I watched him throughout his career and obviously idolized him a lot. So it’s cool to get the chance to play against him. But, again, he’s another opponent. You can’t treat him any different.”

Uh-huh … Good luck with that, Sam.

Bennett is a sharp kid, and ‘treat him like any other opponent’ is exactly what he’s supposed to say.

Thing is, every NHLer will later admit there was an older, established adversary — maybe a handful of ’em — that left them feeling a bit star-struck.

“(Peter) Forsberg was that for me,” Crosby said after Friday’s practice at Consol Energy Center. “He was in Philly, and I really kind of admired the way he played and the way he competed every night. That was a guy that I probably should have just bought a ticket the first time I played against him. I think I was minus-4. He taught me a pretty hard lesson right away.

“He was a guy that I kind of got caught watching. You respected him so much … But you learn pretty quickly he’s going to make you look bad if you do that.”

With a resume that includes two Hart Trophy nods, a pair of Olympic triumphs — including the golden goal at the 2010 Vancouver Games — and a Stanley Cup ring, Crosby is one of those guys that can make you look bad.

It’s worth noting Saturday’s matinee at Consol Energy Center (1 p.m., Sportsnet/Sportsnet 960 The Fan) will mark the second time that Bennett has shared a sheet with No. 87, and the Flames’ rookie certainly didn’t seem overwhelmed in a 5-2 victory against the Penguins at the Saddledome in November. In fact, Bennett scored a straight-to-YouTube goal, added an assist and was named the first star that night.

This time is different, though.

Bennett was working on the wing then. The 19-year-old is now transitioning to the pivot position, where he should be a fixture for the Flames for a long, long time.

“Just a really smart player,” praised Crosby, who is also familiar with Bennett from an off-season training camp in Colorado. “He’s quick. He’s got really good hands. He showed that. He had a couple nice ones — I think it was against us in Calgary …

“He’s just a really smart player and gets around the ice and finds those areas. He’s intelligent in finding ways to create offence every night.”

Sidney CrosbyGavin Young /
Calgary Herald

If he can create offence during Saturday’s showdown in the Steel City, that will really speak volumes.

After all, this could be Bennett’s biggest challenge yet in his brief tenure as an NHL middleman.

If you watch the full replay of his highlight-reel tally against the Penguins in November, you’ll notice that before he toe-dragged around defenceman Ian Cole or tucked a forehand behind Marc-Andre Fleury to finish off a nifty deke, the high-speed sequence started with Flames centre Mikael Backlund scrambling a draw against Crosby in Calgary’s defensive zone.

On Saturday, it will be Bennett staring down Sid at the faceoff dot.

The Penguins will likely try to pick on the talented teen, who has only two points — both assists — and a minus-7 mark in eight outings since being switched to centre.

With the Flames an afterthought in the playoff race, head coach Bob Hartley might not shield the kid from being matched up against the 28-year-old Crosby.

And Bennett? He’ll hope it’s not a tough-luck night that he’s describing to reporters a decade later.

“I think just naturally, you’re going to have a couple moments where you’re just watching him because you’re so used to that,” Bennett admitted. “But you really have to just bear down and not think about it. Just think about him as someone who’s in your way of winning games.”

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